Moonlight and Conversation
by Sandoz
Summary: After running away for the second time, Chase and Gert share a romantic moment alone on the beach. Almost.


Title: Moonlight and Conversation  
Author: Sandoz  
Fandom: Runaways  
Pairing: Chase/Gert  
Written for: 30caresses  
Prompt: 012: Moonlit sky  
Disclaimer: Runaways was created by Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona and is the property of Marvel Comics.  
Summary: "You're putting me on the spot here. Don't make me tell you how awesome you are. You know that already." After running away for the second time, Chase and Gert share a romantic moment alone on the beach. Almost.

The wet sand felt good between Gert's toes. She inhaled the fresh air while the cool, foamy seawater washed ashore, tickling her feet before retreating back into the waves. Night had fallen on Venice Beach and the area was dark save for the moon which gleamed full and white like a sand dollar in the black velvet sky. But Gert's eyes remained fixed on the churning sea. The setting would have been quite tranquil if not for the dinosaur frolicking in the waves nearby.

The mechanical sound of gears turning disturbed Gert's reverie. The sight of a teenage boy descending a flight of stairs that materialized out of thin air would have shocked an ordinary bystander, but "ordinary" was not a word to describe Gert Yorkes. She had already become jaded to the spectacle of a person disembarking the camouflaged ship known as the _Leapfrog_.

A more-than-slightly-disheveled Chase Stein set foot on the sand, yawning hugely. "Hey, Gert."

"Hey yourself," she replied.

"You know it's, like, three a.m., right?"

"Of course. Molly snores like a jackhammer. Why are _you_ awake?"

"No rest for the wicked." Chase shrugged, smacking his lips. "I was gonna say that Molly's snoring sounds like a dying animal, but 'jackhammer' works too."

Gert turned her body toward the sea and folded her arms across her chest, hoping that Chase was bright enough to pick up on her _"okay, you can go away now"_ posture.

Apparently he wasn't.

"Um," Chase's voice punctuated the silence, "Are you okay by yourself? I mean, you never know what kinda weirdoes are out at night."

Giving Chase a blank stare, Gert pointed at something behind him. Chase turned and took note of Gert's pet dinosaur, which happened to be happily scurrying after a crab.

"My case rests," Chase deadpanned.

But Gert was looking at Old Lace, not him. The crab had eluded the dinosaur, disappearing into its hole in the sand. Old Lace refused to give up on her tiny prey, however, and was using her front legs to dig after it, stirring up huge mounds of sand like a dog trying to uncover its favorite bone. A smile tugged at the corners of Gert's lips.

"Why did you do it?" she asked.

Chase made an evasive gesture with his hands. "Like I said, Molly woke me up and I came down to--"

Gert rolled her eyes. "Don't play dumb with me, Chase."

He sighed, defeated. "Do I have to explain it?"

"Yes."

"Come on, Gert," Chase said, taking a step closer to her. Their gazes locked. "I read the papers. I heard about the 'dangerous animal' the Avengers locked away after they sent us up the Social Services creek. I was the only one of us who fell off the boat. It had to be me. What else could I do?"

Gert made a small sound of disbelief. "You could have walked away. You could have done _nothing_. All those weeks I didn't hear from you, I thought you were either _dead_ or being an _asshole_, but you…" Her lower lip quivered, and she straightened her shoulders to regain her composure. "Do you have any idea what you did?"

Blinking in surprise, Chase shook his head.

Gert pulled away from him and walked closer to the waves. She could not believe that her armor was slipping, and in front of _Chase Stein_ of all people. The water drenched her ankles and she curled her toes in the dampened sand.

"You know that Old Lace and I share a psychic link. That doesn't go away, even if we're separated. I could feel her, Chase, no matter how many bars or miles they put between us. She was _sad_ and _lonely_ and _scared_, and I felt all of it. I was _nauseated_ by my own helplessness. You did more for her than I did. I owe you one, Stein."

He grinned. "Awesome."

Whirling around, Gert bridged the distance between their bodies with a few steps and pressed her index finger against Chase's chest. "But don't get any ideas. I may be grateful, but that doesn't mean you're going to get_ laid_."

Stepping back, Chase held up his hands. A few strands of blonde hair fell in his eyes, but he didn't push them away. "What is _that _supposed to mean?"

"I may have kissed you back there, but I'm not going to settle for being your practice girlfriend until you decide to move onto blonder, skinnier pastures."

Chase blustered, "Wait, you think I—_Karolina_? Look, I admit that I used to have the hots for her way back in the day, but that's ancient history. Don't get me wrong, Karolina's a doll, but she's built like a stick. A stick that _glows_."

Gert quirked one eyebrow. "A glow stick."

"Yeah!" Chase's grin spread from ear to ear. He arched his brows suggestively. "I can appreciate a woman with curves."

Gert's stare could have frozen the ocean. "You're not helping your case, you know."

"Why do you think I went looking for Old Lace?" Chase asked, pointing emphatically at the oblivious dinosaur. "You're putting me on the spot here. Don't make me tell you how awesome you are. You know that already."

Gert said nothing. She couldn't believe that Chase Stein was making her _blush_.

He scratched his head, trying to think. "You know how some people have weird shit days? I've had a weird shit _life_, Gert, but none of that mattered—not even when I was sleeping under a nasty ass park bench—because you were the only thing on my mind the whole time."

Gert turned her shoulder to him. "Don't…"

"I want to be with you," Chase said quietly, earnestly. "What do I have to do to prove it, go all _John Cusack_ and hold up a boombox outside your window? Tell me what I have to do for you to--"

"Chase." Gert pressed her finger to his lips, instantly quieting him. Under the light of the moon he could see the smile on her face. "Shut up."

She pulled her hand away slowly. Without hesitation, Chase ran his fingers through a lock of Gert's hair, feeling its softness before brushing it over her shoulder. He leaned in to press his lips to her forehead, but the opportunity was short-lived.

"Ah!" Gert's body swayed as a strong current washed over them both, and she found herself suddenly knee-deep in water. Losing her balance, Gert feared that she was about to fall backwards and take an unwanted bath, but Chase quickly took her by the hand and pulled her up.

"Whew," he said, wincing as his blue jeans were soaked almost to his thighs. "Gotcha."

"Guess I owe you another one," said Gert as she straightened her glasses.

"Nah." Chase shook his head. Together they took clumsy, wet steps up the beach, away from the incoming tide. The wind whipped their hair around their faces, carrying with it the soothing sounds of the surf crashing against the shore.

"You know," Chase began, craning his neck to get a better view of the full moon as it reflected onto the big black sea, "A boy and a girl together on a moonlit beach at night …most people would say this is romantic."

Gert smirked. "Most people would." Suddenly, her hand felt a strong squeeze. "Chase, you're still holding my hand."

"Oh really?" Chase flashed a boyish grin. "How about that."


End file.
